Abstract: This collection contains the correspondence, records, and ephemera of Private Edward Richardson Marcellus from his time in
France and Germany with the American Expeditionary Force during WWI.

Language of Material: The materials in this collection are primarily in English. One series contains materials in German.

This collection is arranged by material type, author, and date. Series 1: Correspondence from Edward Marcellus -- Series 2:
Correspondence from Goldie Marcellus -- Series 3: Correspondence from Peter "Papa" Marcellus -- Series 4: Other correspondence
with Edward Marcellus -- Series 5: Military correspondence and documents -- Series 6: Personal records -- Series 7: Ephemera
-- Series 8: German language materials.

Biographical / Historical

Edward Richardson Marcellus was born January 30, 1895 in Lincoln, Nebraska to Peter and Emma Marcellus. He had three siblings:
Randolph, Hazel, and Stella. He worked as a bookkeeper for Henry H. Shufeldt & Company in 1915 in Peoria, Illinois. In 1917
at age 22 he registered for the World War I draft, listing his occupation as an accountant. He claimed that he fully supported
his parents, but did not claim exemption from the draft. He married Goldie L. Brown and shared an apartment with her and her
twin sister Gladys. In 1918 he began his service with the 5th Anti-Aircraft Machine Gun Battalion in the American Expeditionary
Force. He served in both France and Germany. In the summer of 1919 he returned home. Goldie gave birth to a stillborn child
in December of 1921. Shortly thereafter they divorced and Edward remarried Bertha "Birdie" Elizabeth Hundley. They had one
daughter, Virginia, in 1924. In 1925 they moved to Decatur, Illinois and lived there for the duration of his life. For the
rest of his career he worked as a salesman for Check Protector Machines. Edward died on March 20, 1970 and is buried at the
Fairlawn Cemetery with Birdie, who died in 1980.

Preferred Citation

[Item title], Edward R. Marcellus First World War correspondence (2014.040.w.r), Center for American War Letters Archives,
Chapman University, CA.

Content Description

This collection contains 130 correspondence between Private Edward Marcellus and his wife Goldie, father, siblings, friends,
and business contacts during his service with the American Expeditionary Force in France and Germany, September 1918 to June,
1919. Marcellus was part of a small contingent of American soldiers tasked to oversee the administration of an ex-German prisoner
of war camp of Russian prisoners. The collection also contains military documents, personal records, and ephemera.

Conditions Governing Use

There are no restrictions on the use of this material except where previously copyrighted material is concerned. It is the
responsibility of the researcher to obtain all permissions.